GOP Senator Clarifies Angry Tweet To Obama Saying “I’m no NAIL”
The political classes have been wondering what on earth Senator Chuck Grassley meant by his somewhat eccentric tweet yesterday in which he called Obama a “hammer” and said angrily: “I’m no NAIL.”
What Senator Grassley meant, his spokesperson tells me, was that he would greatly appreciate it if Obama would “let the legislative process work” and show a bit more “bipartisan” spirit.
The Tweet Heard ‘Round the World was a reaction to the fact that Obama was in Paris over the weekend while simultaneously calling on Congress to deliver on health care reform. Grassley tweeted:
Pres Obama while u sightseeing in Paris u said ‘time to delivr on healthcare’ When you are a “hammer” u think evrything is NAIL I’m no NAIL
I asked Grassley spokesperson Jill Kozeny what he meant. She emailed:
Senator Grassley has been urging the President to let the legislative process work so that health care reform legislation restructuring 17 percent of America’s economy will reflect broad consensus and garner bipartisan support from as many as 80 senators.
A good deal clearer, though perhaps not quite as colorful. One of these days Senators will figure out that tweets are, you know, public statements that are read by lots and lots of people, including reporters.
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Who is writing these tweets for them? There’s no way Grassley is smart enough to operate the technology. I’m telling ya, there’s no way he’s writing his own tweets.
Yes, he is writing his own tweets.
And no, there is no chance of a health care reform bill getting 80 votes in the Senate. Even the SCHIP expansion bill earlier this year only got 66 votes in the Senate. That should have been an easy bipartisan vote.
TWI — Tweeting While Intoxicated.
with the retirement of Senator Allard, Grassley moved up a notch to stupidest man in the Senate — just behind Kyl.
TWI — heh! a coinage is born! jzap strikes again.
I’m just perplexed that a 70-something y.o. man can operate twitter. Well, confused that he has the time and the knowledge to know how to use a Blackberry, send a text or log on to the internet somewhere. I don’t think it’s him doing it. I think it’s a staffer, which I’m sure happens all the time. Grassley just doesn’t strike me as the techie kind.
You know, the GOP discovered Twitter but they don’t get it, still. They are pretty much running the party via Tweeting these days and boy is it stooooooooooopid.
“jzap strikes again.”
Dad gum it – wish I’d thought of it, jzap! That’s my highest compliment.
Wow, Grassley confirmed that he in fact does his own tweeting.
.
I still don’t believe it.
Okay, okay, okay, I’ll concede that Grassley does his own tweeting. I’m amazed trust me.
.
I don’t think the problem is the technology, I think it’s actually letting right wingers write their inner thoughts out for the world to view.
twitter is so 2008.
You’re very charitable, Greg. The “clarification” really isn’t much of a clarification. Here’s hoping, though, that all this attention won’t discourage the Grasshopper from twitting.
Surely Inhofe is a strong contender for the honor.
Those tweets let us voters know how wingnutty he’s becoming. I used to think he was pretty independent, but not for the last 2 years.
Hey, great post, really well written. You should post more about this.
There is a lot wrong with Grassley’s position.
1. The president and the people (who vastly favor a public option, single payer even) are part of the legislative process, not just the Senate (and by extension, Big Pharm, the insurance industry, HMO’s, etc.).
2. The purpose of reform is to get something that works for Americans. Whether or not there is bipartisan support is irrelevant. All that is necessary is that a real reform that results in a system that works for the people of America. That the various involved industries might have to earn their money instead of sitting back and watching it roll in does not matter in the least.
3. He confuses broad consensus of the pets of the medical industry with broad consensus of the American public. In the public there already is a broad consensus. And he’s on the wrong side of it.
I think it’s obvious that Grassley somehow thought Obama was insisting that “it’s time to deliver” immediately, as if Obama was wanting it to be finished up this week or something. I think it was just a misunderstanding because he’s a twit.
Speaking of which, I’m not too old, yet I still fail to see what’s so great about Twitter. I think it’ll be seen as being a jokey fad in a few more years and there will be too many comedies set in the late 00’s in which Twitter is used as a joke by a dumb character who we’re supposed to laugh at; akin to seeing Rubik’s Cube and Pac Man in a modern film set in the 80’s.
Hey Doctor Biobrain, stop it. You’re insulting Pac Man with that comparison.
Twit: A foolish or annoying person; To reproach, blame; to ridicule or tease
Twitter: An electronic outlet for Twits
Grassley’s more like a FAIL.
I AM NOT A NAIL, I AM A FREE MAN!